Care South Take 5 July 2023

Welcome to Take5

There has been plenty to celebrate at Care South in the last couple of months since our last edition of Take5. Summer is upon on us – we’ve had some fabulous weather – and now some rain! We’ve celebrated our Stars Awards nominations online, the King’s Coronation in some style, long service awards, plenty of new starters – at all levels, and a whole host of activities, events and outings at all our homes and offices... and now we’ve just celebrated our Stars Awards in person!

This special edition of Take5 focuses on those Stars Awards celebrations.

We were all able to get together online at the end of May, with parties at all your homes and offices, to announce the short-listed finalists who would join us for prizegiving at Vitality Stadium in Bournemouth just a few days ago on 13 July 2023.

The parties in the homes and offices at the end of May looked great fun and congratulations to Beauchamp House, St Ives House and our Care at Home Bath Office who, judging by the photos, seem to have celebrated the hardest! It was lovely for me to join Beauchamp House for their party.

We had well over a hundred of us from all corners of Care South at Vitality Stadium and it was so good to be able to celebrate all that is good about Care South in person again, for the first time in four years.

This year there was a huge emphasis on teamwork and well done to the catering team at Kenwith Castle who won the award for the Best Dining Experience. Sam Baker and the activities team at Dorset House very deservedly won the award for the Best Activities Programme.

The Pride in Your Home award was won by our Housekeepers, Domestic Assistants, Laundry Assistants and Maintenance Operative at Fairlawn, and the office-based team of Administrators and Care Co-ordinators at Crewkerne celebrated winning the award for Pride in Your Service in Care at Home.

Our Care at Home Bournemouth Office and Buxton House management teams won awards in Best Management Team for Care at Home and residential care respectively – well done to both!

Insofar as the silverware was concerned, our Chairman, Chris Kean presented Sarah Broom and the Crewkerne Office with the Care at Home cup and Tracey Walker and Wickmeads with the cup for Residential Care Home of the Year! Well done to both services for a fantastic year!

Really well done to our Head Office IT team, who won the award for Best Head Office support team – an award which was voted on by all our services.

Many, many congratulations to all our winners.

Some of you were lucky enough to be nominated for an award and some even more fortunate to win an award. However, competition this year was intense, with quality and compliance across all services in Care South being at such high levels, and whilst your contribution may not have been recognised in this way, it is greatly appreciated.

As ever, our HEART Values remain incredibly important to us all throughout the organisation, and I know those Values are everpresent in all your hard work and in everything you do to keep residents in our care, Care at Home clients and each other safe.

As is always the case, you have continued go that ‘extra mile’ in keeping all our homes and our Care at Home clients warm and safe, and with Food, Fun and Friendship in abundance, and at the heart of everything you do. Thank you!

Thank you to all of you for your commitment to Care South!

Simon Bird, Chief Executive

HOME OF T H E Y EAR

Wickmeads – our Residential Care Home of the Year 2023.

CSAH OFFICE OF T H E Y EAR

Crewkerne – winners of the Care at Home Office of the Year 2023.

2023 STARS AWARDS

A Moment with Maggie

It was so good to see so many of you receiving recognition for all your hard work and dedication at this year’s Stars Awards – well done to everyone!

Our 2023 ‘Virtual’ Stars

New for this year, we launched our Stars Awards with an online shortlisting event and party on 31 May, which gave us the opportunity to have lots of fun and laughter across our homes and Care at Home offices.

Here are just a few photos from the day – read all about this year’s winners over the next few pages of Take5!

We regularly celebrate key loyalty milestones and in May, June and July there will have been 52 employees receiving awards in recognition of their length of service. Those celebrating 3-15 years’ service receive a £50 voucher and an additional day’s leave in that year, and those who have over 20 years’ service receive £500 and an additional day’s holiday in the service recognition leave year.

As part of our ongoing commitment to learning and development, I’m excited to confirm that we will be relaunching our management and leadership programmes in the autumn.

The HR Business Partners (Zoe and Moira) are currently meeting with Managers to establish any learning needs. If you would like to develop your skills and knowledge through the achievement of qualifications, or enhance your career with us by undertaking additional learning and development, please talk to your Manager.

Maggie

Maggie Searle, Director of HR and Training

Anagram Corner

Can you untangle these tricky anagrams?

All these words can be found on the pages of this issue of Take5. The first five correct entries drawn out of the hat will all receive a £30 voucher.

CARER OF THE YEAR

And the winners are …

This year’s Stars Awards celebration was our biggest and best yet! We were delighted to welcome you all to the fantastic AFC Bournemouth Vitality Stadium on Thursday 13 July to help celebrate the amazing professionalism, commitment and passion of every single member of our team.

CARER OF THE YEAR

Winner

Lisa upholds the highest standards of Care at Home, finding solutions to ensure the best possible outcomes for client.

Winner

Linda was our worthy winner in recognition of her outstanding teamwork, passion, and ensuring the best possible end of life care for residents and their loved ones.

Winner – Jane Legg from Care at Home Bournemouth

Jane consistently goes the extra mile, excelling in all areas and supporting colleagues and clients at a moment’s notice.

Winner

Kizzy was recognised for being both professional and cheerful, going over and above to support colleagues and putting residents at the heart of everything she does, all whilst maintaining a great sense of humour.

– Linda Robertson from Castle Dene

– Lisa Emery from Care at Home Bath

– Kizzy Cook from Fern Brook Lodge

CTL / N U RSE OF T H E YEAR

Liam has grown in confidence and skill over the past 12 months and was praised for his warm and calming influence, his hard work to ensure care planning is based on individual needs, and putting his heart and soul into positive outcomes.

Karen was selected as the winner due to her caring disposition, hard work and supportiveness to ensure her clients achieve their goals.

Winner – Dorset House

Dorset House was awarded Activities Team of the Year for its fun and stimulating activities and its close links with the local community. The home received a special mention for its drive and determination, even getting compliments sent in from passers-by and attracting new residents when out at events.

Winner – Kenwith Castle

Kenwith Castle was our winner of the 2023 Dining Excellence award to reflect its consistent high standards of fresh and wellbalanced meals, and its welcoming, well-presented dining room. The home was also praised for holding its popular, regular food-related activities.

Winner – Liam Conlan from Buxton House

Winner – Karen Moger from Care at Home West Dorset

2023 STARS AWARDS

Congratulations to all our 2023 Stars!

All our homes and Care at Home offices enjoy some friendly competition but there must be a winner – the judges’ decisions were not easy, as the high quality of care and feedback received from residents and relatives across the whole Care South group is second-to-none.

Winner – Fairlawn

The Fairlawn Housekeeping and Maintenance team was selected for not only taking pride in its work but also for being so friendly and engaging to residents and going out of its way to meet people’s needs, always with a warm welcome.

Winner – Care at Home Crewkerne

The Crewkerne team clinched this award for its organisational skills, excellent reputation and always receiving positive feedback from both clients and the care team. The team regularly takes part in fundraisers, provides tailor-made hampers for clients, recently moved all care plans to PASS and still manages to excel in audits!

Winner – IT

The IT team were worthy winners for being responsive, friendly, and exceptional. The team was recognised for dealing with individual queries and protecting the company with great combined skills and knowledge.

PR I D E IN YOUR SERVICE SUPPORT TEAM OF T H E Y EAR

Winner – Care at Home Bournemouth

The Bournemouth team was noted for working hard to create a positive culture and always looking for ways to improve working conditions to the whole team. The team recently achieved 100% in compliance and training and achieved the highest audit score.

Winner – Buxton House

The Buxton House team has been working tirelessly to improve the quality of care at the home and build an excellent reputation within the local community. The team was highlighted for accelerating the Buxton House journey from a focus home to a pillar of the community.

Winner – Wickmeads

The coveted Home of the Year 2023 was presented to Wickmeads. This award was presented in recognition of Tracey’s team consistently delivering fantastic care all year round, generally working effectively and efficiently together, and clearly demonstrating what a successful and thriving home looks like.

Winner – Care at Home Crewkerne

Care South at Home Office of the Year 2023 was presented to Crewkerne, in recognition of its great training compliance, staff retention, customer testimonials and consistently meeting its KPIs in delivering fantastic care day-in, day-out.

Care South welcomes...

Daniel is our Lead Software Specialist

Daniel Hollands from the Head Office IT team has been promoted to Lead Software Specialist.

Daniel joined the team five years ago and, in this new role, he is responsible for ensuring that all of the software used throughout the company remains functional and that everyone is trained on the use of the systems and following best practice.

Fairlawn welcomes Tina as new Home Manager

Tina Vincent has joined Fairlawn and brings with her over 30 years’ experience in care.

During her career, Tina has been a trainer, delivering Health and Social Care apprenticeships. She is currently studying her Level 6 in Health and Social Care Management.

Tina is working with and supporting the Fairlawn team to deliver the highest standards of care – she is quickly getting to know all the residents and helping make a difference to their lives.

New Deputy Home Manager joins Fremington Manor

Starting out her career as a Carer, Joanne Passmore has been working in the care industry for 12 years.

Joanne then decided to embark on a nursing career and, over the past two years, she has been a Registered Manager of both a residential home and a larger, more complex nursing home.

Joanne brings a wealth of experience to her new role at Fremington Manor, which is already benefiting the wider team.

Daniel, commented: “I work alongside a great team of people and really enjoy being able to support our frontline teams, to ensure they are comfortable using our software and gain feedback on how we can continuously improve.”

Senior Administrator promotion at St Ives House

Sara Carlton joined Care South two years ago and was well-known to the St Ives House team as her Mum was a resident at the home.

After Sara’s mum sadly passed away, she missed her visits to St Ives House and jumped at the chance to apply for a parttime admin role at the home.

Sara has now taken on the role of Senior Administrator – a busy position ensuring all aspects of the home’s admin is running efficiently and effectively. Sara said: “This is an exciting new role for me – I look forward to continuing to learn new skills, helping to create a good admin team environment, and being part of the amazing St Ives House team.”

Rachel Sohorye promoted to Regional Operations Manager

Rachel joined Care South in 2019 as Home Manager before being promoted to Peripatetic Home Manager and now recently appointed as one of our Regional Operations Managers.

Rachel is now overseeing a portfolio of seven homes and managing all Home Managers at these homes.

Commenting on her appointment, Rachel said: “I am really looking forward to making a difference and achieving positive results for all residents in our care and our staff. I always strive for the best and the key focus in my new role is to drive compliance and financial sustainability whilst having some fun along the way!”

A duo of promotions at Fairlawn

James Stringer has been promoted to Senior Care Assistant at Fairlawn. He’s looking forward to new challenges in his role and being able to provide even better care for residents he is looking after.

Sarah Brunt has been promoted to Activities Lead at Fairlawn, after joining the home earlier this year as Activities Assistant. Sarah is looking forward to expanding the home’s entertainment programme and getting the residents and their families more involved in the local community.

Anniversary celebrations!

We have lots of fantastic anniversary celebrations in this issue. A big thank you to each and every one of you for your hard work and dedication.

10 years:

Angela Jenner, Kenwith Castle

Jemma Smith, Buxton House

Richard Tulk, Maiden Castle House

Amanda Toogood, Fern Brook Lodge

Samantha Mills, Sussexdown

Asya Boteva Mosaheb, Sussexdown

Wendy Spurdle, Care at Home Crewkerne

Jaime Webb, Wickmeads

Robyn Hall, Dorset House

Dawn Berry, Fremington Manor

15 years:

Elizabeth Burrell, Care at Home Crewkerne

Patricia Winslow, Elizabeth House

Carrie Donald, Elizabeth House

Elizabeth Sprankling, Care at Home Crewkerne

20 years:

Linda Wright, Care at Home Crewkerne

30 years:

Rachel Lear, Beauchamp House

Suzanne Richardson-Kaye, Wickmeads

Key dates for your diary

• Saturday 5 August – Dorset Food & Arts Festival

• Monday 7 - Sunday 13 August – Afternoon Tea Week

• Friday 1 - Saturday 30 September – World Alzheimer’s Month

• Saturday 2 – Sunday 3 September – Dorset County Show

• Thursday 21 September – World Alzheimer’s Day

• Saturday 23 September – Autumn Equinox

• Sunday 24 September – National Day of Arts in Care Homes

• Friday 29 September – Macmillan Coffee Morning

• Sunday 1 October – National Grandparents’ Day

• Friday 6 October – World Smile Day

Update from Care South at Home

It has been lovely to meet colleagues at our recent coffee mornings, as the Operations Team travel around our Care at Home offices.

Your recent feedback surveys and the Staff Association meeting were largely positive but with some very helpful suggestions for improvement and development, which the Managers are now working towards. You will soon receive a ‘You Said, We Did’ poster summarising the actions taken. Bex, Rahul and I really appreciate hearing the honest reflections of our frontline staff – it helps us to shape our future services for our clients and to help retain our wonderful staff. During July, we have started our client, stakeholder, and professionals feedback surveys. As we have seen in recent years, their feedback is generally so positive, and it reflects how much you are valued by those you support. I look forward to sharing this in due course. Local Authorities and CQC have been undertaking monitoring visits and calls across the services - again, feedback has been so positive about your contribution to the lives of the people we support and the way services are led and managed.

As a matter of routine, you should have regular supervisions, appraisals and competency checks. Training should also be planned well in advance to ensure that no training becomes overdue. The PASS care planning system is working well and I have only heard positive commentary from staff. We have also launched Open PASS, the portal for clients and their families to view the care plan and records. The Operations Team, Managers and Supervisors have been working super hard to ensure that care plans on PASS are truly person-centred. Unfortunately, the implementation of the PASS rostering system will now be unavoidably delayed, pending further development work, but rest assured it is still very much in our planning.

I’m proud to say that our Assisted Living services are heralding some firsts for Care South. At Beauchamp Gardens, Frank has led the way in growing our first community allotment and at Kenwith Castle Gardens, the Pavilion community shop and café will hopefully be opening its doors in early September. Our Grant a Wish initiative, an idea from HCA Roxana in the Bournemouth service, will start soon, where we will identify clients with an aspiration and attempt to make it happen. This is something that we don’t have to do but choose to do, reflecting our HEART Values.

Finally, welcome to Paris Coombes, the Interim Manager for our Bath service and hopefully soon to become the Registered Manager. In the face of some challenges, Paris and Deputy, Neil are working so hard with the support of the wider team to take the service forwards. Also, just a thank you to the Ops team, Managers, and their teams for their tenacity and hard work – it really is appreciated. Take care and keep on doing the great job you do.

Martin

Martin Ross, Director of Care at Home

New community allotment for Beauchamp Gardens

Beauchamp Gardens’ resident, Frank, has been very busy this spring, setting up a community allotment which will benefit all residents at this Assisted Living development.

Green-fingered Frank has worked tirelessly, planting lots of delightful fruit and vegetables – Tanya and Ranee from the Assisted Living team are looking forward to a ‘field to fork’ celebration when everything has fully grown.

Care at Home Crewkerne Diamond Art session

Kathy Dowling, Supervisor at Care at Home Crewkerne has been giving up her spare time to support residents at Kenwith Castle Gardens in a new artistic venture – diamond art sessions.

Kathy took a photo of the lake at Kenwith Castle Gardens and this has been reproduced in diamond art. The method is a modern combination of cross-stitch and painting-by-numbers, using an applicator to apply hundreds of sparkling resin rhinestones, one-by-one, on a background image. The end result is a vivid, highly indivdual work of art, which has been displayed at the service centre in Kenwith Castle Gardens.

Castle Dene says farewell to Dot after 24 years

Castle Dene staff and residents have waved a fond farewell to long-serving member, Dot, who was deemed a ‘friend to everyone’ as she starts her retirement.

Dot worked for Care South as a Laundry Assistant for over two decades and was known for bringing joy to the day-to-day lives of residents and the team.

Dot became close with residents and members of staff, and the home soon started to feel like a family. She said: “They say if you love your job, you’ll never work a day again. I found something I enjoyed, stuck with it for 24 years, and never wanted to change. I felt at home; the residents and the team are like a family to me. I always felt happy, and I think that rubbed off on everyone.” Although Dot will miss her ‘work family’, she said: “Despite not seeing everyone as much as usual, I certainly won’t be a stranger. I’ll be popping in to see the residents and my old colleagues regularly, and I’ll be volunteering at the summer fete. Plus I’ll be telling everyone about what I’ve been up to at the weekly coffee mornings.”

Lana Wright, Home Manager at Castle Dene, said: “Dot was a fantastic member of our team. She is a friend to everyone – staff, visitors, residents and their families, all love spending time with her. She will be missed by many! Nothing was too much trouble, and she did everything to give residents the best experience. I’m very grateful for the chance to have worked with her.”

Dot spent her working days running the laundry room at the home, mending clothes, and sewing, and would always make time to interact with the residents, help out with activities, and provide a warm, friendly face. Dot would often listen to residents’ life stories and share her own adventures with them. One of Dot’s favourite tales to tell was about the day she met her husband and the memories they have created during their 50+ years together. Their daughter, Hayley, now works at Castle Dene as a Care Team Leader.

Thank you, Dot, we all wish you a long and happy retirement!

Update from Phil Smith, Director of Residential Care

What a fantastic day it was attending my very first Stars Awards Ceremony at AFC Bournemouth’s Vitality Stadium!

It was a such a pleasure to take part in this year’s celebrations with everyone and I would like to say a special thank you to all this year’s finalists! It’s so important that we acknowledge the amazing job and commitment all our teams give to residents in our care, and I am already looking forward to getting involved in next year’s Stars Awards nominations. In other news, I have now visited all 15 of our homes in which I have enjoyed immensely meeting you all and getting to know how all our homes work. It has been fantastic to talk to as many new faces as possible and if I missed you on my first time around, don’t worry I will see you next time. Make sure you stop me and say hello!

Finally, just a reminder as we enter the peak holiday season, please ensure you have your time off booked to ensure you get your well-earned rest! If you are unsure how to do this, please see your Home Manager.

So, until next time, thank you for all you do.

Phil

Suzanne celebrates 30 years

In July, Suzanne Kaye, Deputy Manager at Wickmeads, celebrated an outstanding 30 years of service with Care South.

Chief Executive, Simon Bird, came to the home to present Suzanne with a card, flowers and to give a personal thank you for all her hard work and service with the Company. Suzanne said: “I’ve loved every minute of my career with Care South and look forward to many more to come.”

A summer full of

Residents from Talbot View enjoyed a wonderful day out to Hengistbury Head in the warm sunshine.

Fish and chips on the front at Swanage - a timeless favourite for the residents from Wickmeads.

Cycling Without Age is a Dorchester-based charity which takes people out in trishaws – a hit with Maiden Castle House!

Reggae, Calypso, and lots of Food, Fun and Friendship were on the menu at the Elizabeth House tropical summer party.

Not all residents are able to get outside in the summer – the Kenwith Castle interactive tablet brings entertainment to all.

The recent Music in the Garden event at Sussexdown was was enjoyed by everyone, depsite some weather-related challenges!

Who needs a concert? Fremington Manor residents took their singing to the next level with a fun-filled sing-along.

Jaxson, the therapy dog, is a regular visitor at Fern Brook Lodge. The residents enjoy brushing him and even giving him the occasional sneaky treat, which of course Jaxson loves!

Food, Fun and Friendship!

Castle Dene residents enjoyed their day trip out to the historic Salisbury Cathedral where they took in all the sights, including the Magna Carta.

Visiting a garden centre was one of the St Ives House resident’s ‘wishes for the day’. Everyone enjoyed looking at the plants and gifts, followed by delicious afternoon tea in the café.

A beautiful sunny day for the Beauchamp House trip to Hestercombe Gardens.

International Beer Day at Buxton House. Cheers everyone!

A fabulous day out at Nick’s Farm for residents from Alexandra House.

The Care at Home Bournemouth team delivered cold water and ice creams for clients to enjoy on a hot summer’s day.

Residents from Dorset House were delighted to see their grandchildren/great grandchildren take part in the school sports day.

Fairlawn residents had a great time visiting the amazing Tank Museum at Bovington in Dorset.

All our homes celebrated the King’s Coronation in style, with it turning into a whole week of memorable festivities for many. It was wonderful to welcome so many friends and family members to help us celebrate and we had some fantastic feedback about the many events and activities that took place across the group.

Simon Bird said: “Much like last year’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations, this hugely significant national occasion gave us all a chance to come together as a community. The Food, Fun and Friendship shared across Care South over the weekend will stay in the memories of everyone involved for a very long time. Special moments happen daily in a care home, but events like this, especially when family and friends are involved, are extraordinary.” Here’s a snapshot of what we got up to!

The party in full swing at St Ives House – everyone dressed up in their best red, white and blue!

Phil Smith joined the celebrations at Sussexdown, along with families and friends of residents.

Music and dancing at Alexandra House. Cheers! Toasting our new King at Elizabeth House.

It’s Take5 quiz time!

Fancy bagging yourself a £30 voucher? Simply answer the ten questions below and send your answers to take5@mckennatownsend.com

1. In which city will the 2024 Summer Olympics be held?

2. Can you name the essential vitamin that comes from sunlight?

3. Which iconic musical features the song, ‘Summer Nights’?

4. What is the name of the traditional Greek dip made with yogurt, cucumber, garlic, and dill?

5. If someone has hayfever, what are they allergic to?

6. What is the name of Disney’s mermaid princess?

7. What is the longest day of the year called?

8. What type of pastry are profiteroles made out of?

9. Calamari is a dish made from which animal?

10. Which TV soap opera is set in Summer Bay?

Take5 competition entries

Send your entries for all our Take 5 competitions to take5@mckennatownsend.com

Closing date for all the competitions in this issue is 29 September – and all the lucky winners will be listed in the next edition of Take5.

Good luck everyone!

Take5 photography competition

We had some fantastic scenic shots for our latest photo competition but there was one clear winner with this beautiful image called ‘reflections’.

This shot and title are particularly appropriate for our Stars Awards edition of Take5, where we ‘reflect’ on all our teams, how proud we are of everyone who works for Care South, and the wonderful care that’s delivered every day of the year.

Congratulations to Debbie Hedges from Head Office! Debbie will be receiving a £50 voucher.

We look forward to seeing lots of summery images for our next issue. Please remember to send us high-resolution images and, if sending from a phone, to share with one of the highest settings. Send your photos, along with your details and a title for your shot to take5@mckennatownsend.com

Wow, what a picture!

A Royal visit to Poundbury.

It was a big surprise for Care at Home West Dorset team members, Karen Moger and Natasha Sansom, to look out of the office window one morning, only to see King Charles touring the square just outside! It’s not every day you get to photograph the King!

Congratulations to Karen!

We would like to extend a huge congratulations to Karen Hodges, our Group Dementia Lead who has recently completed and passed her Post Graduate Certificate in Dementia Studies.

Karen’s graduation will be held in September at the beautiful Worcester Cathedral. Karen thanked Care South for their support in sponsoring her to achieve this qualification, without which it wouldn’t have been possible for her to undertake.

Simon Bird said: “We are very proud to have Karen as part of our team and to support her in developing her skills and furthering her qualifications. Karen’s expert skills and dedication to being our Group Dementia Lead has led to the creation of a robust dementia strategy and is bringing many benefits to residents in our care.”

Dementia Care Coach initiative update

As you will remember from the last issue of Take5, we have recently introduced our new ‘Dementia Care Coach’ (DCC) initiative.

The roll-out started in April, and we are pleased to have successfully completed the first phase of the programme with Talbot View, Buxton House, Maiden Castle House, Sussexdown and Fern Brook Lodge. The feedback has been excellent from all those that have taken part.

Starting in September, Phase 2 will include Kenwith Castle, Fairlawn, Alexandra House, Wickmeads and St Ives House. Finally, Phase 3 will roll out in early 2024 for Beauchamp House, Castle Dene, Dorset House, Elizabeth House and Fremington Manor.

Commenting on the initiative, Karen Hodges, said: The role of a Dementia Care Coach (DCC) is to support, mentor and coach their colleagues in the most up-to-date, evidencebased practice in dementia care. Those taking part have collaborated in eight workshops, covering numerous topics in dementia care and leadership skills, and are now working on implementing person-centred approaches across their homes. It has been a real honour to support the DCC’s over the last couple of months and I am overwhelmed at their dedication and passion to provide exceptional dementia care.”

Sssh... I am not telling you my password!

Maintaining good password hygiene practices is not only essential at work but equally as applicable at home.

Some internet sites, services and systems you use will be more secure than others. Imagine if one of the less secure was compromised and a cyber-criminal got hold of your password. If you are using this password for other systems, they may be able to get into those as well!

Keep your personal and business accounts safe by adopting good password hygiene practices.

What does good password practice look like?

• Never disclose your password(s) to anyone – not even to people you trust

• Avoid using the same password in multiple places

• Use a reputable password manager to store your password information or write them down somewhere secure

• Enable Multi-factor authentication (MFA), if the system provider offers it

What does a good password look like?

When it comes to creating a password, the following are two strong ideas:

• Random three words, for example BrownTreeCat#9, FrontCallTin12!, SpinThreeFan-6

• Sentence pass phrases such as I Like Pie 79!, I Must Swim #8, Spuds For Children ?6

Passwords should not include any of the following:

• Information which is personal to you, such as your pet’s name or children’s name

• Dates of any kind, for example 2023, 19-05-2023

• Easy to guess words like password, care, secret, caresouth

It’s better to have a strong password written down and stored securely than it is to use a weak password, and no, post-it notes stuck to monitors is not what we mean by securely!

Talbot View to walk one million steps for Dementia UK

Team members and residents from Talbot View have set themselves the challenge to walk one million steps between 1 June and 15 September, to raise money and awareness for Dementia UK.

The challenge is being spearheaded by Activities Assistant, Helen Goss, who achieved an impressive 35,000 steps on the first day! Some residents have been racking up their steps on daily walks around the gardens.

Commenting on the challenge, Helen said: “I have recently finished a charity walk for Cancer Research, where I walked 100 miles and raised £250. The residents were very interested in the walk, so I thought it would be wonderful for them to join in with the Dementia UK fundraiser. We are one big team trying to raise awareness and funds for a subject very close to our hearts. Together, we’ve got this!”

Caring Canines Awards raise the ‘woof ‘

Caring Canines, a Chairman’s 2020 Award beneficiary and firm friend of many of our homes, held its annual awards presentation in June, with Care South’s Simon Bird being selected to present an array of awards at the event.

Simon presented the five, 10 and 15-year service certificates, as well as the Inspire Award, which is for a volunteer who has gone above and beyond in their support of the group. This year, the award was presented to Kristina who, despite struggling with health issues, has never let her condition stop her from supporting Caring Canines. She has been an active volunteer, visiting a day centre for adults with additional needs, care homes and schools, and she also maintains the Caring Canines website. Sue Dennett, Co-Founder of Caring Canines, said: “This was a wonderful occasion, and it’s always a pleasure to celebrate our members. We want to thank Simon for coming along to the presentation and for his kind words about our furry friends and the work we do. Our teams all enjoy visits to care homes, especially the dogs who receive lots of attention from residents.”

Accessible croquet is a hit with Sussexdown residents

Residents from Sussexdown have been learing how to play wheelchair croquet thanks to local croquet ace, John Coventry.

The activity has been made accessible for all, as each resident was taught to play seated in wheelchairs.

Activities assistant, Pauline, was given the suggestion of wheelchair croquet by her father, Canon Peter Cole. Peter enjoys croquet and plays in a wheelchair due to his mobility. He recommended his friend and West Chiltington Croquet Club member, John Coventry, teach the residents of the home how to play. The activity is now taking place weekly at Sussexdown.

Take5 minutes with

Richard Sands, Head Chef at Maiden Castle

House

Richard’s delicious dark chocolate tart

Rich and indulgent, Richard’s tart recipe is a summery sweet treat!

What made you decide to become a Chef?

In 1999, I delivered papers to the old Maiden Castle House from the local corner shop. One rainy day the Deputy Manager asked if I would prefer a job in a dry kitchen. I started pot washing at the weekends and then during the evenings whilst in sixth form. During this time, I found a love for the residents and the place so continued to do NVQ training and worked my way to Head Chef which I have been since 2011.

How do you plan and create the menus?

We run a five-week menu which has a lot of original favourites and of course two roast dinners each week. When planning our menus, we gather information from the residents through meetings with the Activities Lead, Emma and of course one-to-one interactions.

What are some of the residents’ favourite meals?

We’re quite traditional here – the roasts go down well each week as well as the old favourites like cottage pie and of course fish and chips on a Friday.

How do you organise and run a busy kitchen?

Luckily, I have an amazing team that have been with me for quite some time, with a combined service of 36 years.

You’ve been with Care South for many years – what’s been your highlight so far?

I am celebrating my 25th year with Care South this December. In terms of highlights over that time, I can’t pinpoint one exact highlight, but I am hoping for many more to come!

What do you love most about your job?

Having time to go out and speak to the residents which really brightens my day – and hopefully theirs too.

Ingredients (serves 8):

100g digestive biscuits

100g bourbon biscuits

100g butter

1 tbsp golden syrup

200g dark chocolate

2 tbsp icing sugar plus some for dusting

200ml whipping cream

Raspberries to serve

Method:

1. Crush the biscuits together to make the biscuit base –using a plastic bag and a rolling pin is useful for this

2. Melt the butter and golden syrup in a pan over a low heat, then add to the biscuits in a mixing bowl

3. Mix together well then press the mix into a greased round tin and place in the fridge to chill

4. Gently melt the chocolate either in the microwave or in a heat-proof bowl over a pan of boiling water

5. Whip the cream until it’s just holding together, then sift in the icing sugar and mix gently through

6. Add the melted chocolate to the whipped cream and quickly mix. The cold cream will start to firm up the chocolate so do this fast to combine the chocolate and cream thoroughly

7. Add the cream and chocolate mixture on top of the chilled biscuit base, smooth over with a palette knife, then chill for a couple of hours

8. Portion and decorate with either chocolate sauce, crème fraiche or simply dust with icing sugar and raspberries to serve

Take5 WordSearch

Try this Wordsearch for a little brain-teasing fun!

All the words below are hidden in the grid...

WINNERS

SHINING

STARS

VALUES

MILLION

CARE

SUMMER

ASSISTANT

CATERING

DIGNITY

ACTIVITIES

PHOTOGRAPHY

WELCOMING

EQUINOX

SUPPORTIVE

HIGHLIGHTS

MUSEUM TRIP SEASIDE

Take5 winners

Congratulations to all our winners from the spring issue!

Chloe Revell-Wareham from St Ives House, Kath Dowling from Care at Home Crewkerne, Emma Bennett from Elizabeth House, Karen Maidment from Talbot View and Pat Goddard from Beauchamp House were our Anagram winners. They will all receive a £30 voucher. Also receiving a £30 voucher for correctly spotting the differences are Robyn Dominy from St Ives House, Francesca Skirth from Head Office, Jennifer Ellis from Care at Home Crewerne, Karen Andrews from Fern Brook Lodge and Janna Walford from Sussexdown.

And finally, the winner of the Take5 quiz goes to Julianne Gray from Dorset House, who will receive a £30 voucher.

Well done everyone!

Spring issue quiz answers

The answers for the quiz in our spring issue of Take5 were:

1. Summer 2. Daffodil 3. Whale 4. Hot cross buns 5. Kitten

6. Cherry 7. Bambi 8. Woody 9. Petals 10. Florist

Spot the object

We’

Take5 spot the difference

We have five £30 vouchers to give away!

All you need to do for a chance of winning is identify the eight differences between these two photographs from the Stars Awards celebrations. Send your answers to take5@mckennatownsend.com

Tell us what you think!

We’d love to hear your feedback on Take 5!

Is there something you’d like to see in the next issue, or do you have any news that you’d love to see featured?

Just get in touch by emailing take5@mckennatownsend.com

We look forward to hearing from you!